Hitting the tables in Las Vegas isn’t as popular as it used to be. The downturn in gambling over the past 30 years or so has led to fewer gamblers. This has, in turn, led to even fewer people that know the lingo thrown around the casino by people who have been gambling in a casino since they turned 21.

Essentially, you're not actually hacking the game, so as long as you don't go over the top with your casino chip harvesting then you shouldn't run into any problems.

I’ve been gambling since grade school and learned my way around the casino the week of my 21st birthday. Not everyone is like me, though. Not everyone gambles (GASP!). Since moving to Las Vegas I’ve met a good number of people who visit casinos frequently and have never gambled. They’ve never rolled the bones, looked at a card or even put money into a machine (GASP again!). Different strokes for different folks.

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10 Secrets Casinos Don't Want You to Know. Subscribe for more amazing videos! Casinos are multi-million dollar busines. If you're at some little place in Thudpucker, Iowa, about to leave for a 300 mile drive, and can't imagine why you'd ever want to return, you do what you have to do. If you, or a friend, can return the next day on a different shift, or on repeated occasions, and cash in chips in amounts below the casino's hassle threshold, do it that way. Can You Leave With Casino Chips, republik poker, comment gagner un tournoi de poker live, red hawk casino employees. But casinos can seize chips if there's any whiff of suspicion about their origin. At MGM Grand, the state's largest casino, this happens maybe once out of thousands of transactions each month.

There was a time where everyone in a casino could identify the kind of player someone was at the tables simply by the color of the chips they played. Every week I meet more people that visit casinos who don’t know the difference between a red chipper, green chipper or black chipper. There are more people than ever who don’t know what the individual chip colors are or mean.

In an effort to educate our non-gambling friends here’s a look at the chips you’ll find at most tables in a casino. I’ll explain how much they’re worth and how most people use them.

  • $1 – White or Blue Chips – Fun fact: $1 chips used to be coins and often called “bullets.” Today these chips are usually white but are offered in a variety of colors since white chips get dirty quickly. These are mostly used to tip cocktail waitresses, place appropriate odds in craps or for side bets.
  • $5 – Red Chips – These chips are used mostly for table games with minimum wagers below $25. Red chips are sometimes used as a tip for people playing $25 or more per hand. Pro boozing tip: If you’re normally a $1 per drink tipper, use a red chip on the first round to get faster service from the cocktail waitress. This person is often known as a red chipper.
  • $25 – Green Chips – You’ll usually see these in play for hands $25 – $200. When the hand is above $200 (8 green chips) you’ll often see $100 chips played instead. This person is often known as green chipper regardless of the amount per wager.
  • $100 – Black Chips – Most people in the casino will see a person playing black chips as a high roller. They’re often known as a black chipper. These chips are played similar to green chips.
  • $500 – Purple Chips – The goal for most gamblers who play lower denominations is to win so much that they have to cash in their red, green and black chips for a purple (or purplish) chip.
  • $1,000 – Orange or Yellow Chips – So pretty. Most gamblers dream of the day they’re paid with this chip. I’ve cashed out with this chip a few times. Multiple purples are more fun to cash out.

You should note that in addition to these chips that roulette tables use their own chip/chip colors for each player. Poker rooms may also use different chips. The information above is good for most table games in the casino.

Photo (not real casino chips, but close enough): ebay

If you visit casinos, in Las Vegas or elsewhere, you’ve seen these items before. You just haven’t seen them like this!

1. Craps Stick

This device is used by the “stickman” (yes, it’s a “stickman,” even when it’s not a man) to retrieve the dice. They may also be used by shady stickmen to “short stick,” which means pushing the dice to a female gambler just far enough so she has to lean forward to pick them up, cleavage-wise.

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2. Paddle

On casino table games, there’s a slot where your money goes and never comes back. The paddle is used to push the money through the slot.

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A paddle is also called a “plunger.”

Here’s a normal view of a paddle so you know one when you see one.

This paddle is useless in a canoe, so don’t even think about it.

3. Cup Holder

These handy devices keep your cocktail safe.

Casinos hate spilled cocktails on their fancy felt, so cup holders serve a very useful purpose.

Casino cup holders have a special lip that goes under the table’s arm rest, a little insurance to keep us from being whacked by pit bosses.

4. Dice

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There’s nothing like the feel of dice in your hands. Just don’t switch hands while you’re shooting at craps. Casinos prohibit hand-switching to avoid the possibility of cheating.

The spots on dice are called “pips.”

5. Discard Tray

This is where your cards go after they’ve been used. Discard trays are often translucent and red to help casinos catch players marking their cards.

Cheaters use inks or “daubs” which can be detected by viewing cards through the discard tray.

Amazing the things we take for granted when we see them in a casino.

Discard trays are usually affixed to the table with screws, but we’ve always had a couple of screws loose.

6. Gaming Chip

Casino chips are also called checks, cheques or casino tokens. There are several reasons casinos use chips rather than cash, but the main reason is customers gamble more freely when they use chips rather than cash. Surprise!

Many casino chips are made from the same kind of clay used to make kitty litter.

7. Felt Brush

Brushes are used to keep felt tables clean in casinos. Leave brushes off our list? We bristle at the idea.

Felt brush bristles are made of nylon, a family of synthetic polymers known as aliphatic polyamides. Yes, we knew that off the top of our head, thanks.

Here’s another look at the typical felt brush.

A “Brush” can also be a poker room employee who helps players with chips, seating and other tasks. The name was inspired by the brushes used to clean debris from the tables.

8. Roulette Marker

When a number is called in roulette, the dealer places a marker on the number. Players are asked to wait until the marker is removed before retrieving their winnings.

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Roulette markers come in a variety of styles and materials.

A roulette marker is also called a “dolly.” That’s because the profile of some markers looks like a doll.

9. Craps On/Off Puck

A craps puck, also called a “buck,” marks the number you’re shooting for to win. One side of the craps puck says “On” and the other says “Off.” When it’s showing “Off,” you need a seven or 11 to win. When it’s “On,” you need to hit the number the puck is sitting on (the “point”) before a seven to win. Wow, quickest craps lesson, ever. Just ask your dealer for help.

We have no idea why the edges of craps pucks are made of rubber, unless they help prevent unintended pucklets.

The house edge for a Pass Line bet in craps is a mere 1.4%, making it one of the best bets in a casino.

Depending upon which way you turn the puck, it can read “On,” “No,” “Oz” or “Zo.” The Zo are an indigenous tribe in Myanmar, also known as Burma.

10. Bingo Dauber

Bingo players have the option of using machines to track their games, but lots of players still love to daub. Dauber manufacturers say purple is the most popular dauber color.

This is a new dauber, but the fun really starts when the sponge is saturated with inky goodness.

Some people make their own dauber ink. These people clearly have issues.

Much like with ChapStick, nobody has ever actually used up all the ink in a bingo dauber.

11. Craps Pyramid Bumper

OK, here’s our favorite close-up of the bunch. To ensure craps dice land randomly, there’s a portion of the craps table wall covered with pyramid-shaped bumpers. Some players claim they can influence the dice through practice and skill. The bumpers are intended to squash that possibility, real or imagined. This is why you’ll hear dealers and pit bosses insist, “Both dice need to hit the back wall.”

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Some gamblers believe they can influence their roll by “setting” the dice, or putting them in a particular configuration before the throw. Players believe casino staff discourage the practice because dice-setting is a threat to the bottom line. It is, but not for the reason they think. Casinos don’t like dice-setting because it slows down the game. The quicker the pace of the game, the more money a casino makes.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our close-up tour of some common casino items. Maybe you’ll see them a little differently the next time you play!

Special thanks to our friends at the Gambler’s General Store for letting us photograph their stuff.